The release of Rebiya Kadeer, a prominent businesswoman arrested in 1999 on charges of "revealing state information to foreigners," signals about the preparations of China to meet the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

This is not the first time when China frees political detainees as a diplomatic move to avoid sanctions from the US and the United Nations human rights groups.

Rebiya Kadeer was arrested in 1999 while making an attempt to meet US congressional staff members in the western province of Xinjiang. She was released from a jail in the capital of Xinjiang Urumqi and left the country for the US where her husband and five children live.

"We’re excited and happy beyond words," said Kadeer’s daughter Akida Rouzi, "We can’t wait to see her, and for that moment when the whole family can be reunited. The lesson the Chinese government wanted to teach us is that being put in prison is what happens when you stand up and fight for your freedoms. But what we learned is that we’re not alone, that when things like this happen, many people in the world will support you and help you."

The release was welcomed by the human rights group Amnesty International. It said in a statement that the release of Ms. Kadeer is a joyful victory for the human rights groups.